Will mega-constellations cause a dangerous spike in orbital debris?

15 November 2018

It's no secret the mega-constellations will have a dramatic impact on space traffic. Experts now are turning their attention to ensuring they don't also create a dangerous spike in orbital debris.

"In the next decade, people are proposing to launch three times the number of satellites ever launched by anybody for any purpose," said Ted Muelhaupt, associate principal director for The Aerospace Corporation's systems analysis and simulation subdivision.

"If we do business as usual, as we've been conducting it for the last six decades, it won't work. It's not just a matter of collisions. If you try to react to every close approach using the standard methodology, you'll spend all your time ducking and weaving."